5.09.2011

One Last Photo Shoot

The boys are excited to meet the new baby. I wanted to get one more photo shoot before he comes, so we can have pics of me prego with the boys in their new clothes from Grandma, and also pics for the baby books--both for Elijah's 3rd and for the baby's "before you were here" page.

Look at the love! I also love the toes! Thank you, God, for these blessings!!!


Me and my boys! If you ever had a three-year-old, you know how the smiles start to get fake at this stage. Ah! The mother is a photographer! How do these Hallmark people get kids to do such perfect images!? We take what we can get and capture reality! That is why I normally like candids better, but sometimes you have to just try a pose now and then.


Malachi is so sweet and tender. He likes to share his blankie with my belly and he gave up his bed for the baby also. It won't be long til you will meet him!


Here's some 3 year old pics. What a fun boy!



Eljah's 3rd Birthday!

Can you identify this picture? It is a cement mixer! The ones on the internet are amazing, but this is my attempt, using only one tip for the decorating and simple colors. Haha!! Elijah loved it and had fun helping me pick the design and lick the frosting, of course. Don't you love how I wrote the word "Birthday" on the side. Haha! I laugh.

The night before the long-anticipated 3rd birthday, Elijah and Malachi helped me pack and get ready for the beach. Shovels, rakes, balls, hats, swimming vests...Malachi kept saying "Pimming" (swimming)...as though we were going to leave right then.

AFter putting Elijah to bed, Malachi had fun helping me blow up balloons and tossing them off the bed, and back on. He kept singing "Bir-day, Jiah-Jah" (Happy birthday to Elijah).


Elijah was surprised the next morning to find all the balloons! He is excited! You're 3 years old, buddy! What a precoius age.


We went to one of Elijah's favorite places--the beach. It was great to have our special friends there. Whit looks cute in his hat and vest!

Sojo is a doll, buried in the sand!


Now it's Elijah's turn!

I post this one for my dad especially. I can imagine him doing this too--"This is the life!"


My boys are becoming best friends. I pray they will always be close and also become brothers in Christ.


Here's our special friends--thanks for coming to celebrate with us! They are like family to us--their kids the same age as ours, and Rachel also expecting her third in July!


Elijah and Sojo---I love this one. So cute!

Malachi is so joyful on the slides--and he's growing so fast into a little boy (no more baby--make way for #3!).

"At the same time---ready, set go!"

Malachi--what a handsome little man!

I put this one up for my mom--thanks for the shirts! Wow, they really look American there, but very fun to have new clothes for a birthday party!

The whole Becker family at play.



Little heads and bare feet looking at the deer. "Jesus loves the little children..."

My friend, Rachel, and I--prego sisters!



We celebrated with the cake out at the ocean, but the wind prevented candles from being lit. Still yummy!

Malachi is such a fun little guy--he loves to put sand in little cups or lots of buckets.

What a big day! Later in the evening we got a few more pictures (imagine that!) with the boys in their other new shirts from Grandma. This is one of the more successful pics of Mama trying to get two handsome boys to pose together on the couch for a few seconds and smile for the camera. If anyone has little kids you know this is a decent one!

A present from Grandma and Grandpa--long-awaited and now it is time! "A letter!" Elijah said.


A jumping dog, like Jonas has! Two boys at the same time--crazy times! Fun--thank you so much Gma and Gpa!


That night we lit the candles twice and sang twice, for fun. Malachi sings happy birthday to himself also--when will it be his birthday? Candles are so fun.


Thank you, Lord, for our precious son, Elijah Samuel! What a blessing! May he come to trust and follow You at an early age and follow you all his days! May He serve and love you, and may others come to know you through his life.

Baths, Boys, Books, Bana, Boat, Baby, and Beach

We got a new bathtub! I dreamed of one for more than 6 years, but in our new house there is actually room to put on in the CR. Finally, God answered my prayer and this one was 50 % off because it was the floor model and scratched. I am thinking of giving birth in there! Bubbles and bath fun with my boys (I like alliteration, can you tell?).

Another blessing to our new location, space to play outside. We built a sandbox and the boys play in it daily. Thank you, God!

I love this pic of Malachi...he is like a little librarian and sorter. He reminds me of myself, making piles and rearranging them. He carries his stacks of books around as though he is a seminary scholar. Maybe he will be a book fellow like me.

One night Elijah and Nate biked to the market to buy me mangos. They surprised me with flowers! How sweet! (Bana means "husband" in the language here, if you wonder about the title. That starts with "B" so it works!).


Thank you little buddy! Elijah was a cheerful giver.

Nate and I were able to lead together on the 8th grade out trip to the beach one day. We brought our basketball hoop and hooked it to the boat. Fun times! It was quite a work-out for this game, and our Filipino boatmen had fun for their first time ever playing water basketball.


I had this same pose when Malachi was inside my womb at this same location. Now it is another little guy--soon to come out! I was hoping I wouldn't go into labor on this trip, since it is on a rural island out to sea! Whew! I made it back!

He is really growing in there! This is for the fam to see especially. I think this is my biggest pregnancy yet! Is that true for other people's third!


Me and my bana--my babe, my man. Love you honey--hottie!


Baby belly--it's a toss-up whether to post this, but I want my family to see the precious moments too in our lives! Here is Joy, my midwife, who delivered Malachi at our house last time. Now my 2 boys are checking the baby inside, helping hear the heartbeat and feel where is the head (praise God it is down and a good heartbeat). It is amazing how God makes another person inside a woman!

Malachi is precious--little doctor M. There is a similar pic of Elijah when Malachi was inside. Now M is grown to do the same for his little brother!

Zip-Line Father-Son Adventure

There's Nate and Elijah on the Zip-line! I wonder if they let 2-year-olds do that in America.

The guys had an adventure together, and there's Elijah's buddy, Michael with his Papa too. He still talks about that special trip with Nate (aka Papa).


It is supposed to be the "longest and fastest in Asia." What a view, and what a height. Elijah was not scared. He just trusted Papa.

Precious moments! I was glad Michael's dad got these photos so I could peek in on the manly bonding!


Elijah loves to talk about the raft on the river! He was such a peaceful, curious boy all day.


Zip on!


There's the view of the city, ocean, and mountains beyond. Lovely! Come visit the Philippines!


One more holding hand picture. This is for the grandparents out there (or maybe just for myself--precious!).

On the shoulders---ahhhhhh.....Mama melts.


What a special day for father-son bonding.